Paradox of Peace is a pop up word that describes my usual Monday morning bus ride to work. I choose the word "paradox" because it is one of my former shelter supervisor's favorite words and I choose the word "peace" because it is my favorite English word in America.
The Gandhi Statue, which is situated in front of the Indian Embassy on Massachusetts Ave., is a symbol of peace to me. At least his statue reminds me in its own way why I am here, in America.
Monday morning, I felt a bit different. I looked at the Gandhi Statue with mixed feelings.
I saw a worn out, extremely dirty-looking, brown blanket laying at the bottom of the statue. That blanket woke me up. Gandhi probably doesn't realize that his statue can easily be turned into a temporarily shelter for a homeless person in D.C.
The message of the great Indian man who devoted his entire life to peace and continues to create a powerful impact on the world, goes along with the message of a random homeless man in D.C who is struggling to find a roof over his head. This statue and this man were walking toward an unknown destination - the first one is world-recognized while the latter one is only an invisible man who the current government needs to pay attention to (but doesn't really). Peace for the homeless man can mean simply having his next meal and finally having a place to call home.
Peace travels far, deep, and a long ways. The powers of peace may ask you, "what have you been doing to create peace?" The paradox of peace can end now if we can merge the ideal world into reality, and if you can achieve peace with less paradox.
Peace,
TAN
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